


A Working Birthday

by loves_books



Category: The A-Team (2010), The A-Team - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-14
Updated: 2014-04-14
Packaged: 2018-01-19 10:38:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1466281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loves_books/pseuds/loves_books
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Face spends another birthday out on a mission with Hannibal and his team.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Working Birthday

**Author's Note:**

  * For [delorita](https://archiveofourown.org/users/delorita/gifts).



Sunset over the desert was always a beautiful thing, the reds and golds of the setting sun reflected back a thousand times off the unbroken miles of sand below. Not a cloud in the evening sky, and barely a breath of wind to disturb the remaining heat of the day, though Face knew from years of experience that they’d all soon be shivering for warmth when the chill of the desert night descended with a vengeance.

It was truly one of those sights which never failed to steal his breath away, and one of the moments he was always glad for, even though the team were on a mission rather than camping out for pleasure. Face had to stay alert as he patrolled the perimeter of their makeshift camp, but that at least gave him an excuse to stand and watch the sunset for a moment. 

Any passing patrols would have their shadows cast long by the sun, but he was relieved to see there was nothing, no sign at all that they had been followed or that they were being tracked. In a moment he’d carry on with his patrol, moving away from this rocky outcrop and circling back towards the team’s two small tents, ready to let Hannibal take over and try to catch a few hours of sleep. But for now, he could just stand and watch, and wonder at the power of Mother Nature.

Beautiful it certainly was, but Face forgot that beauty the moment he heard soft footsteps behind him, and he spun, dropping to a crouch and raising his rifle in readiness. Holding his breath, he waited, counting to ten, finger tightening on the trigger.

“Face? Kid?” The softest whisper possible, barely a breath, but he knew that beloved voice. Breathing out slowly, feeling his racing heart calm, Face rose back to his feet and lowered his gun.

“Over here, Boss,” he called equally quietly, turning back around to watch the tail end of that remarkable sunset as the night started to draw in.

The soft footsteps grew closer, and Face smiled as he felt a strong pair of arms wrap around his waist, tugging him back against a broad chest. “Nice view,” Hannibal murmured, pressing a gentle kiss to Face’s temple. “This is what you’ve been doing on patrol? While I’ve been eating one of the finest MREs known to mankind?”

“You got stuck with the chilli-mac again, huh?” Face leaned backwards, breathing in the ever-present scent of tobacco smoke which always seemed to hover around this man, and just let Hannibal take his weight as they gazed out over the desert together. A deep chuckle told him he was right about his colonel’s meal of choice, but Hannibal dropped his head to nuzzle at Face’s neck instead of answering. 

For a moment, Face let himself get lost in the taller man’s overwhelming and comforting presence, but suddenly he snapped back into himself. Patrol, mission, bad guys. Not the time or the place, sadly. “Not on the job, remember, Colonel,” he murmured reluctantly, trying to ease himself away from those clinging arms.

But Hannibal simply tightened his grip, refusing to let go. “Just for a moment, Temp,” the older man whispered, and Face startled at the rare use of his given name. “It won’t hurt for just a moment. Haven’t had a chance to say this yet today, not properly – happy birthday, baby.”

Another kiss, this time to his cheek, and Face felt his heart could simply burst with happiness. It was indeed his birthday, though in the chaos of the day it was about the least important detail of all, and it had barely been mentioned. Trust Hannibal to remember and to follow him out here especially. 

The sun dipped lower still on the horizon as Face twisted slightly, looking at his lover over his shoulder. Hannibal’s silver hair was shining bright in the last of the sun’s rays, those wonderful blue-grey eyes burning with love as they gazed right back at him, ignoring the display nature was putting on for them over the desert below. 

“Thank you, John!” Face held his lover’s gaze for a long moment before leaning closer as Hannibal leaned down, and their lips met in a tender kiss. All too brief, sadly, as this was certainly not the place to take things further, and they both knew well all the reasons why they couldn’t. Shouldn’t even be taking this risk, shouldn’t be distracted in any way from the jobs they had to do. 

They had decided long ago that they couldn’t be lovers on a mission, they had to simply be Colonel and Lieutenant, and it worked, as much as their crazy team ever worked. Right at that minute, Murdock and BA were back at the tents, winding down after a difficult day, preparing for more of the same tomorrow, and Face was on watch. Hannibal knew that, just as Face did, and it was the colonel who pulled back from the kiss first this time, always the strongest in their unique partnership.

“You know I’m going to spoil the hell out of you when we get home, right, kid?” the colonel asked, a laugh obvious in his voice as he squeezed Face tightly one last time before stepping back and dropping his arms away. 

Face managed a laugh of his own even as he straightened up, taking a firm hold of his rifle with both hands. “I expect nothing less, Colonel. Now, are you relieving me from watch?”

Hannibal snapped a jaunty little salute. “Consider yourself relieved, Lieutenant. Get yourself back to camp. I think Chef Murdock has a tasty little pasta MRE of some description heating up for you.”

“Can’t wait.” Face smiled one last time at Hannibal, getting a wide smile in response before suddenly his colonel was all business, weapon in hand and sharp eyes sweeping out over the darkening desert. “Stay safe, sir,” he said by way of goodbye as he started to head back towards the tents, picking his way carefully over the rocky floor. 

“You too, kid,” came the soft reply, and then Hannibal was gone into the night, boots falling silent and sure as he took off around the perimeter, leaving Face to make his way back to the camp alone. Not that he felt alone, though, not while he knew his team and his lover were close by. 

It wasn’t the first birthday he’d spent on a mission, in fact over the last eight years as a team all four of them had spent more than one birthday in the field, not to mention four Christmases, three New Year’s Eves, and five Thanksgivings – it was part of the lives they had chosen, and at least they had always been together in their strange little family of sorts. That thought made Face smile as he walked slowly through the sand and rocks, still alert with rifle held ready, even though Hannibal was keeping watch now. 

He knew his lover would spoil him as promised when they returned to the real world, but for now, his birthday was unimportant. For now, the mission was all that mattered, and with that thought Face tugged his jacket a little closer against the growing chill, focussing back on the job at hand even while the memory of the soft pressure of Hannibal’s lips against his own gave him a warm glow deep in his stomach.

**Author's Note:**

> Written as a little birthday gift for Delorita.


End file.
